


Meet The Team

by Party Poison (Pretty_Odd)



Category: Original Work
Genre: AU - Steampunk
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-31
Updated: 2020-06-01
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:20:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,726
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24464107
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pretty_Odd/pseuds/Party%20Poison
Summary: She was sitting under a table the day her life changed. The lighter in her hands flickered, casting strange shadows across her content face, but for once her gaze was drawn elsewhere.~The story of how the Syndicate formed.
Kudos: 3





	1. Chapter 1

She was sitting under a table the day her life changed. The lighter in her hands flickered, casting strange shadows across her content face, but for once her gaze was drawn elsewhere. The door to the bar opened and in stepped the silhouette of a man she had never seen before. He almost looked like an angel with the way the sunlight pooled around him, especially around that hat of his that made it look like some sort of halo. If only she knew just how far off that was.

The bar was quiet, as it always was when a newcomer entered. It was almost as if everyone was sizing him up, friend or foe? The silence was drawn out a little too long.

“I’m looking for a,” he glances down at the crumpled paper in his hands,” Skylar Raven,” he finished in a gruff voice.

The patrons of the bar turned around and began chatting away again. Upon hearing her name called out so openly she shuffled, rather awkwardly, further under the table. Skylar kept her amber eyes glued to the underside of the table, staring at the words burnt into it as if it was the most interesting thing the bar had to offer. 

Her ears however, locked onto a certain conversation between the new guy and her bartender friend, Lola.

“Look stranger, I don’t know what business you have with my friend but if you cause _any_ trouble, I will not hesitate to _end_ you,” Lola says with an odd cheerfulness.

“I’d like to see you try,” the man snaps back in a blunt tone.

“How do you know I didn’t poison your drink?”

“Sweetie-“

“Don’t call me that.”

“Honey, if you wanted to kill me you would’ve done so already,” he says rather accusingly as he eyes the silver glint of a revolver strapped to her leg. Lola smiles, she likes this guy. She slides over a shot glass.

“It’s on the house,” she winks.

The man ignores it, “I’ll ask you again. Where. Is. Your. Friend?”

Lola sighs, and nods her head to an empty table.

“Very funny,” he says, fingers tapping the counter impatiently.

Lola has to stifle back a laugh because she can see the wary gaze of Skylar _under_ the table. She can see Skylar vigorously shaking her head and mouthing the words _‘don’t you dare’_ over and over again. 

When Lola locks her eyes onto Skylar, the latter knows she’s doomed. 

Without looking away, the bartender smiles, “check under the table.” And Skylar swears on her life she’s going to get her back for that one day because the man is walking over.

He crouches down and Skylar gives him a sheepish smile. She takes this moment to study his face, brown eyes and long greasy hair, a bit of stubble. The corners of his mouth are tilted down and his eyes burn holes into her.

“Skylar?” he says, and it’s almost strained, as if he’s been through this process before. She looks at the paper that’s still clutched between his hands, she sees a bunch of names crossed off with the words _‘DEAD’_ scrawled out next to them.

She gulps.

“Hah, you got the wrong guy-... girl, I’m... too likeable to die.”

The man closes his eyes, his fingers pinch the bridge of his nose, “get up Skylar.”

Skylar complies with the order and slinks up through the gap between the table and chair. They sit opposite from each other, Skylar can’t help but send one more angry glare Lola’s way. She can see Lola smiling, that bitch.

Skylar whistles some tune she heard some girl strumming on a guitar outside. She looks everywhere but at the man sitting in front of her. 

He clears his throat, effectively capturing Skylar’s attention. She raises an eyebrow.

”Oh I’m sorry...sorry if this comes off as a little rude but. Who the fuck are you and why do you know my name? I mean, I get that I’m quite a stand out around here but _to know my name?_ Don’t you think that’s a little stalkeri-“

”You talk too much.”

Skylar looks at him indignantly, somewhat offended by him, “so you’re here to shut me up? Silence my voice? Go ahead,” she leans back in her seat and kicks her feet up onto the table, “I fear nothing, and it’s not like I have anything wor-“

”You’re doing it again.”

Skylar clenches her jaw at the man’s uninterested expression. ”You done now? Got nothing more to say-?”

”Actually-“

”Excellent, now. Contrary to your belief I am _not_ here to kill you. In fact, I’m here to hire you,” he smirks. Skylar swears she has never hated a smile more in her life than now. She briefly considers the idea of leaving but the man intrigues her enough to stay.

Once satisfied he’s got her attention he continues, “I’m gathering a team of unique skillsets. And well, I don’t have a team yet,” he places the crumpled list of names on the table for Skylar to see. She scans through all the crossed off names, all of them with ‘ _DEAD’_ labeled next to them except some man named Lachlan Dread. She then looks at the last two names on the list, her own and someone called Graham Lawton. 

“As you can see I’m all out of options,” the man presses.

“So you need me to join your little team of, what? Special people? And what exactly are we going to do, because I don’t know what special skill I have but I certainly cannot be-“

”We’re gonna rob a train,” he says bluntly and straight to the point. He sits back and tilts his wide brimmed hat up slightly to get a better view of her reaction. He might have to kill her right now. He hopes he doesn’t have to.

Skylar’s eyes widen in dismay at the man’s words, she searches his expression for signs of humour but he has a damn good poker face.

“Uh, no can do sir. I’d rather stay out of jail,” Skylar stands up abruptly and moves to walk away but the man is fast.

She feels cold metal pressed against the back of her head. She wonders briefly if any of the other bar patrons can see what’s going on in the dark corner but everyone is too engrossed in their own conversations. Her eyes flick to Lola but she’s too busy serving customers.

”Do it,” she says quietly, calling him out on his bluff but not loud enough for anyone else to hear. 

The man puts his gun down, silently admiring her bravery. He’ll let her believe he was never planning to kill her then and there. “Sit down, we aren’t done talking,” he growls, voice dripping with venom.

Skylar swings around and flops herself back into the chair. Her black faux-hawk falls in her face, she lazily brushes it out of the way, acting as if the man hadn’t just threatened to kill her a moment ago.

”So, what special skill do I have exactly? Because if you ask anyone around here they’d say I’m pretty useless,” despite the sad undertone of the sentence she says it somewhat angrily.

”You have an affinity for fire,” he states as his hand shoots out and snatches the lighter from her scarf. 

”You have an affinity for being annoying,” she barks back, she swipes her lighter back before placing it securely under her shirt.

The man ignores the playground insult and tilts his head at her, “you’ll be paid.”

Skylar perks up, “why did you not open with that? I could use with a bit of cash right now, so how much of the percentage do I get?”

”Ten.”

”Fifty.”

”Fifteen.”

”Fourty.”

”Twenty.”

Skylar raises an eyebrow, waiting for the man to cave.

”Fine. Thirty,” he says, he holds a hand out for her to shake. Skylar looks between the gun in his other hand, his face and the hand held out to him.

She shakes his hand.

The man then motions for her to follow, they start to head out of the old bar but not before he chucks a wad of cash in Lola’s direction. Skylar trails behind him, avoiding the stares of people as he leads her out the door. 

The sun is bright in her eyes, especially since she’d been hiding under the dirty old table all day. 

“Come on, we’ve got one more person to recruit,” he says gruffly.

“If I’m gonna be working with you I should at least know you’re name,” she huffs. She slides the scarf over her face to keep out the dust.

The man pauses for a moment, he casts her a sideways glance and gives her the first genuine smile she’s ever seen him make.

”Name’s Sean Black.” 


	2. Chapter 2

“Sean Black,” Skylar echoes, her eyes darken. Sean freezes, like a deer caught in headlights, should he have not mentioned his name? Would Skylar run away knowing who he is? Sean really didn’t want to kill another person for the fifth time today, so he stood still, waiting for his new companion to put the dots together.

“I have...” Skylar looks up from the dusty road, her golden gaze unreadable, “never heard of you.” She then grins, a little dorky smile, at Sean who had just let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. She skips ahead of him, suddenly carefree and cheerful. Sean glances around, he’d only just arrived in town this morning after making quick work of two people who were meant to be recruits but there was something about them that just got on his nerves. _And Skylar doesnt?_ His brain asks. 

“So who we lookin’ for?” Skylar says absentmindedly, snapping Sean out of his thoughts. The man takes out the crumpled paper from his pocket and hands it to Skylar who snatches it rather rudely from his hand. She gazes at the last name on the list. 

”Graham Lawton...” she mumbles. Now _this_ is a name she recognises and oh she is going to have fun with this. 

Sean raises an eyebrow expectantly, he crosses his arms and waits for an answer. 

“Yeah I know Graham... but it’s gonna cost ya,” she winks and mirrors Sean’s pose, the only difference being the hand on her hip.

Sean has only known this girl for a whole ten minutes and already he wonders why he hasn’t put a bullet in her head yet. 

“No.”

”Well it was worth a try, this way,” and she leads him down the street. Much to Sean’s surprise they walk in a comfortable silence. 

Silence that was then broken by a man skipping towards them whistling to the tune of ‘Drunken Sailor’ whilst also juggling a few grenades in his hands. Sean can’t help but stare at this mess of a man; uneven blue hair held back by a pair of goggles, a tattered brown trench coat, manic brown eyes and a wide smile that doesn’t look like it belongs on a human face. Sean shakes his head and focuses his gaze on Skylar who had stopped walking.

They lock eyes and Skylar gives a subtle nod towards the blue haired grenade loving man. Sean’s eyes widen almost comically and he shakes his head. Skylar nods faster.

”That’s your guy,” she grins crookedly, pointing over her shoulder at the crazed man. Sean covers half his face with his hand, groaning inwardly. Skylar dangles the ruined piece of paper tauntingly over Sean’s head, gesturing to all the crossed off names because she knows he has no other options left. He wants to _kill_ her. Sean takes the paper from her hands and tears it up before stomping it into the ground. 

“We can do the heist ourselves,” Sean says, whether he was trying to convince Skylar or himself he didn’t know. 

“Bet you _really_ regret taking out those other people that could’ve helped us,” Skylar draws out, she then half shrugs, “but I guess that also means more money for me.” 

Caught up in their conversation the two didn’t notice Graham sprinting past until he was already halfway down the street. Skylar spins on her foot and begins heading back towards the bar. Sean reluctantly follows her.

Standing outside the bar the two look at each other when they hear the commotion inside. Suddenly the patrons come pouring out and they hear Lola shouting.   
  
“GRAHAM ANTHONY LAWTON THAT IS THE SEVENTH TIME THIS WEEK YOU’VE SCARED AWAY MY CUSTOMERS!” She shouts in pure rage, “AND IT’S ONLY MONDAY!”

Skylar gestures for Sean to enter, as if to say ‘ladies first’ and then follows him in. The duo is confronted by the sight of the man giggling, trying to shove the pin back into a grenade. 

“That wasn’t meant to happen,” he grins, despite the attempt at an apology the manic look never leaves his eyes. After two or three more tries at putting the pin in he finally succeeds. ”There it won’t go boom boom now,” he pouts.

“Graham Lawton?” Sean questions, secretly hoping that Skylar was just joking about this being the guy. The girl chuckles behind him, completely amused by what is to come.

Graham jumps onto the counter, dropping his grenades everywhere, and karate chops the air.

”LOLA THE VOICES ARE BACK- Oh hi!” Graham plops down on the counter upon seeing Skylar with an unfamiliar man. He sits cross-legged and smiles like a preschooler at the two. Lola makes no attempt to move him off, instead she hands the psychotic man a glass of whiskey. He gratefully takes it and downs its contents. Though his mouth is closed a muffled scream can be heard coming from deep within the man’s chest. Sean looks at Graham with complete and utter confusion. Skylar smirks and crosses her arm, she leans against a nearby wall, watching the scene play out.

”Gray, I told you before, don’t drink while you have a peppermint in your mouth,” Lola sighs. 

Graham slams the cup down, crying, “it just keeps getting worse and worse.” 

The bartender pats the man’s head in a comforting manner, “I know.” 

Graham lifts the cup up to his mouth to finish the last remnants of whiskey but Lola pushes it away, “Gray, you have company,” she nods towards Sean.

Sean has a pained expression on his face, “you.. you are Graham Lawton correct?” Sean silently prays to whatever god is out there that this is not the man he is looking for, but he knows he definitely is not going to heaven when he dies, the gods are against him.

”Yep! That’s me! I am most definitely Graham Lawton! The man you’re looking for! This guy! Right here! Wow, I can’t believe someone’s been looking for me! I feel so needed and grateful-“ his sentence is cut short by a disgusting burp, “oh god, whiskey was a bad idea,” he whispers very loudly.

Sean spins around and faces a smug looking Skylar, “this guy talks as much as you do.” 

Skylar holds back a laugh and simply shrugs.

”So, graham-“

”That’s me!”

Sean flinches in annoyance at the man’s sudden outburst before continuing, “I’m gathering a team of skilled people for a job... a heist to be exa-“

”Count me in!” Graham is giggling. Sean opens his mouth to say more but quickly closes it. 

Graham swings around on the polished counter and faces Lola, “here’s your tip, sweetie!” He digs around in his pockets and takes out two peppermint candies. He then hops off the counter and begins to, as Graham called it, _harvest_ his grenades from where he had dropped them earlier. 

While the new recruit was distracted Sean turns to the pretty bartender. “You’re not gonna tell anyone ‘bout our heist are you?” Sean glares menacingly at Lola, one hand on his gun. 

Lola nods, “Gray could use a little bit of fresh air.”

Sean takes that as a yes, and then sits down at the table he had met Skylar at earlier. Together the three begin discussing plans, with Graham interrupting to rant about bombs at times and Skylar staring dreamily into the fireplace. They didn’t know it yet, but that was the day their lives changed. For better or for worse. 


	3. Chapter 3

Skylar wasn’t sure what time the game of blackjack started. Sometime during their somewhat unruly planning the sun had set and Lola had fished out a deck of cards from deep within one of the bar’s many cupboards.

“Feel free to stay the night,” she had said somewhere around the tenth hour, “there’s some spare rooms upstairs,” Lola eyed the two men. Skylar had been left out of course, for the past few weeks the table had become her home of sorts. With that Lola had disappeared upstairs, the telltale click of a lock signifying her departure.

That was four hours ago. 

Skylar rubbed her eyes, yawning slightly, but she wasn’t going to give in to the basic human need of sleep- no, Skylar was going to win this stupid card game and all the stuff her male counterparts bet on.

Graham grinned after receiving his two cards from their dealer, Sean. Skylar wondered if this man knew how betting and poker faces worked.

“GO FISH!” He slammed down two cards. Apparently not.

Sean closed his eyes, rubbing the spot between his eyebrows, “Graham for the last time, that isn’t how you play blackjack.” 

Skylar looked at Graham’s cards and, with a heavy pain in her voice, she groaned, “actually he won.”

Sean has to do a double take because there is no way Graham has two aces, there is no way that Graham, of all people, just won. He blinks a couple of times, vaguely wondering if he was somehow hallucinating but the two cards never wavered. Graham peered at Sean, his eyes bright and his grin brighter. Sean heard a loud thump, a few of the coins on the table scattered everywhere. To his right Skylar had her face planted on the hard wood table, whining about losing one of her precious lighters. 

“I’m going outside,” Skylar muttered to no one in particular, leaving Sean to deal with Graham.

She stepped out into the cold night air and fished a lighter from her bra and a cigarette from her pocket. Skylar left the flame on for a little longer than necessary, enjoying the way the light flickered at the end of the nozzle before eventually putting it out. She drew in a long breath of smoke before exhaling.

”You act like a moody teenager.”  


Skylar tenses up but doesn’t turn to face him. 

“Got bored of Graham?” she asks but she already knows the answer. 

“I can’t believe you left me with that... thing,” Sean sighs, already fed up with his new companion. 

“He isn’t that bad, he’s... a smart guy. Graham’s just a little childish at times,” Skylar takes another breath of the cigarette in her mouth, and exhales into Sean’s face.

”So are you,” Sean frowns, waving the smoke away with his hand. 

“Oh, _ouch!_ I feel _so_ insulted, how will I ever come back from such hurt? Time to wallow away in my grei-“

”Have I ever told you, you talk too much?” he huffs.

Skylar smirks, “once or twice.”

”You know I like you better when you shut up,” Sean crosses his arms, his face concealing any emotion.

”Was that meant to be a compliment?”

”No.”

The man swipes Skylar’s cigarette and draws in a long breath, leaving her exasperated.

”You know you could’ve just asked right? Instead of stealing something that _I_ paid for. Oh wait! I forgot, you’re a criminal-“

”Would you have given it to me if I asked?” Sean says, a little more serious than he had intended.

Skylar pauses to think for a moment, her amber eyes mischievous, “no.”

”Exactly.”

They stand around in a comfortable silence. Skylar took out a new cigarette for herself and leaned against the wall of the bar. It was particularly peaceful at this time of the night, families were tucked in their cozy houses living comfortable lives, sleeping without a worry in the world. There were no fights, no shouting matches, just the quiet hoot of an owl. Skylar would often stay up late, wondering what it was like to have a family. 

Sean looks at Skylar, obviously catching her deep in thought, and yeah, he likes her a lot better when she isn’t talking.

”If you think I’m gonna tell you some sob story you’re wrong,” she says, never taking her eyes off the lighter in her hands. 

“If you think I care, you’re wrong,” he snaps back. He waves her goodnight and walks back into the bar. One week. One week and he would never have to see these people again. One week and he’d get to go back home.

Sean didn’t notice Graham sitting under a tap until he was starting to walk up the stairs. He chuckled quietly at the sight of Graham lapping up all the booze that trickled out of it. Sean catches the man’s eye and he falls off the counter.

”Don’ tell-“ Graham burps mid-sentence, “Lola... but... I think taps are supposed to have water.” Graham is giggling now and his words are slurred.

”This is water tastes spicy,” the man continues, he tries to stand up but he hits his head on the underside of the counter.

Before Graham can finish his drunken rant Sean interrupts him, “go to sleep.”

”But there’s a monster under my bed,” he snorts, then his eyes darken, “he whispers sweet nothings to me and calls me baby.”

Sean can’t help but laugh a little, “suit yourself.”

He heads upstairs and finds an empty room, sinking into the soft bed. His eyes flicker close as the first light of dawn trickles through the gaps in the dusty blinds. 


	4. Chapter 4

Sean groaned as he tried to chase the last remnants of whatever dream he was having. He vaguely remembers something about a horse in a shed but the more he tries to remember the more he forgets. Sean flips onto his back and stares at the white flaky ceiling. That’s when he hears the second explosion. His room shakes and dust falls onto his bed. He has the thought to move out of the way but his tired body glues him down. Coughing slightly, he brushes the small bits of ceiling from his shirt and gets out of bed, promptly moving to the window.

He takes a moment to allow his eyes to adjust to the sunlight outside. There’s another explosion and the ground quakes beneath his feet, he silently wonders if this building would be able to withstand another blast. Peering outside he looks down at the street below where three sizeable craters have been made. The crazy blue-haired man stands in the middle of one of them, jumping up and down excitedly like a kid on his first day of school. 

There’s some muffled commotion. Sean opens the window to listen, amused by whatever is going down below. _Amused?_ he asks himself, if it were any other day he’d usually be _annoyed_. Sean doesn’t think more about it and returns his focus to the scene below. The screaming has stopped, and an angry Lola comes into view. A small crowd has gathered to watch the spectacle. Sean notices she has an empty bottle clutched tightly in one hand, her knuckles turn white. She then smashes the end of the bottle into the brick wall and points the pointy end of it at Graham.

Graham knows when he’s screwed. The man turns and runs down the street, Lola close behind. Sean allows a little chuckle to slip from his lips and moves away from the dusty windowsill. He pulls on his boots and grabs his coat and hat from a rack. A knock on his door startles him.

”I’m guessing you’re awake now?” comes Skylar’s muffled voice through the door.

”No I’m asleep,” he snaps back.

He could almost feel Skylar’s eye roll from behind the door, “you know you could learn to be a little nicer.”

Sean gives Skylar no reply, knowing very well she’s waiting for the moment she can get back at him. He takes his time leisurely getting ready. When he leaves his room he’s surprised to find Skylar still standing there.

”So Grahamdecidedtoplaywithhisgrenadesbutendedupaccidentallysettingthemoffsomehowandi’mprettysurethecopsaregonnaturnupfairlysoo-“

”I’m really getting sick of the way you talk you know that right?” Sean grumbles, his expression twisted in annoyance.

Skylar looks at him for a moment and waves her hand above her head. She speaks slowly, carefully enunciating each word as if she was talking to a child, “you should probably hide, cops will be here soon to investigate.” 

Sean lashes out to slap her over the head but she turns around and runs downstairs, jumping off from the fifth-last step onto the ground. Her hands are tucked into her pocket. She tilts her head to look over her shoulder up at Sean and nods for him to follow. Sean walks down the stairs, begrudgingly following the girl outside. 

Once outside Sean notices it’s around midday, the searing desert heat making him feel uncomfortable. A rough fabric hits him in the face, Sean’s mind registers it as Skylar’s scarf. He raises an eyebrow at her.

”You know, for someone of your status I’m really surprised no one has noticed you yet,” her voice is bland, giving nothing away. 

But Sean frowns. 

”You knew who I was this whole time,” it was more of a statement than a question. 

Skylar nods.

”That’s why you hesitated,” Sean murmured to himself. 

“Congratulations Mr Holmes, would you like a medal?,” Skylar smirks, head tilted and a hand on her hip.

”Why didn’t you just admit it from the beginning?” Sean says, his voice low and unreadable.

”Because...” her voice trails off wistfully, “because if I didn’t know who you were you wouldn’t pretend, you’d act like yourself. You aren’t the son of the Black Syndicate leader, you are Sean Black. That, and I was scared of you.”

”What was that?” Sean says, confused.

”I’m scared of you?” 

“No the first part, why would you want to know the real me?” And for once he isn’t being condescending towards her, he’s genuinely curious. He wraps Skylar’s scarf around his face while waiting for her reply.

“Because then I might find some dirt on you, bribe you or the police. You are worth a lot of money, _Sean Black,_ ” Skylar stands against the bar’s outside wall, looking at the man smugly. 

“You know, for someone who isn’t a criminal you are a terrible person.”

”For someone who is a criminal you’re kind of a softie inside aren’t you?” Skylar knows she’s won when Sean holds a gun against her back, out of sight of the general public but pressed hard enough to let her know.

”Call me that again and I will _personally_ cut off your tongue and make _you_ feed it to the dogs, that is if you don’t drown in your own blood first.”

Skylar laughs to hide her uneasiness, “I’m just teasing, come on.” There it is again, her brave facade in the face of death. 

Sean slides his gun back into his hidden holster. They don’t even make it two steps before Graham is running back shouting about the cops.

Skylar turns around quickly, faster than Sean can react, and shoves him into an alley.

”Stay quiet.”

Sean’s face scrunches up in anger, he stands up and brushes the dirt from his clothes and readjusts his hat. He looms menacingly over Skylar when a car pulls around the corner. A tall lady steps out of the vehicle with a gun in hand. Sean decides to yell at Skylar later, and keeps quiet.

The lady is clad in dark blue clothes, a golden badge shines brightly in the sun. Her dark brown hair falls past her shoulder, she flicks it out of the way with grace. A second officer steps out of the car and joins his partner. Skylar doesn’t dare breathe, she hopes that they don’t look this way. 

But her amber eyes meet brown ones and Skylar knows she’s gonna have to sweet talk her way out of this one.


End file.
